Entries tagged as ‘networking’
One of the most popular business tools in the Web 2.0 world is Linkedin. If you are not on Linkedin yet, I would highly encourage you to get there, set up a profile and start connecting with your network. More and more business networking and connecting are happening using Linkedin, it is a tool that makes it easier to connect your network. Here are several ways that you can effectively use Linkedin to help you save time, support your network, pass referrals, and set yourself apart as an expert.
1. Set up your profile – Make it complete, many people go to profiles to learn more about you and your business, what your experience is, as well as where you went to school, and who you know.
2. Put a professional photo on your profile – Linkedin is not a “social” site, it is geared more for business and business people. Make sure that you are putting your best smile forward. If you do not have a professional photo get one!
3. Ask for recommendations – If you have done work for one of your clients or network members ask them if they would consider writing a recommendation for you. Last week I spoke at the BNI National Conference, several people asked me later what they could do for me. I asked each of them, if they had been in my presentation would they please go to my Linkedin Profile and write a recommendation. I asked them to list 2-3 things that they learned and why they would recommend me to others. In the Referrals for Life Program we teach our students how to write good testimonials for one another, a recommendation on Linkedin simply makes that testimonial public.
4. Invite your Network to Link - how many people do you have in your database? How many of them are already on Linkedin? Start connecting to them and invite the ones who are not on the site to join you. When you have your network on the site and you are linked to them it will make it so much easier to pass referrals and make connections between each other. You can make connections for one another on Linkedin. No more going through your CRM finding the information on a contact then emailing it. You can simply make connections on the Linkedin site.
5. Answer Questions – find questions that you can answer that will help you be seen as an expert. Because of a question that I answered on Linkedin, I was ask to speak on a conference call to a group of Female CEO’s. Find the questions on topics that you are expert in and answer them well. You can also use these same questions in your blog and newsletters.
Last week, one person in my network, connected me to someone in his network who had ask him if he would make the connection. After some conversation he ask me if I would consider speaking at the regional conference for his organization. I then connected him to someone that he saw in my network whom he thought would be good for a future speaking engagement.
Of all the sites that I am on, Linkedin is the one that makes it easy to connect my networks and help them to connect to one another, it is a perfect tool when you are in the Referrals for Life Program. Remember Linkedin is a tool that enhances, not replace your face to face networking.
Categories: Online Networking
Tagged: BNI, connecting, database, linkedin, networking, online, Referral Insititute, referrals, testimonials
Business people spend a lot of time networking, some times it is important to slow down and develop relationships with the people that you have added to your network. In the book “The 29% Solution” by Dr. Ivan R Misner and Michelle Donovan, they discuss tactics for building better relationships with your network members. The more we get to know our network members the more credibility we build with them.
Here are 5 questions to ask your network member that will allow you to develop a deeper relationship.
1. What would yo like to accomplish with your business this year?
2. What are your challenges this year?
3. What is standing in the way of your meeting yur goals?
4. How can I help you?
5. What do you need to help you be successful?
Pay attention to what you hear, make notes and set out to help your network member. It is important to spend time working on your network instead of doing more networking. The deeper you develop your network the more valuable it becomes.
Categories: Strategy · networking
Tagged: business, business network, Ivan R Misner, networking, Relationships
Over the years I have developed a pretty deep network and one of the things that I spend a lot of time doing is up dating my database. In the process of doing that this week I noticed that my strongest referral relationships are with guys. So I began to think about that, why are there more males in my strong contact network instead of women and here are some of the things that I came up with.
When I sit down with a guy to build a referral relationship the conversation tends to be straight forward. When I ask the question, “What can I do to help you grow your business?” They almost always have a response. They let me know exactly what it is I can do; “You can help me get more speaking engagements” or “If you do a newsletter it would be great if you would let me put an article in it.”
On the other hand if when I sit down with a female referral source and ask the same question I am often given this response; “I can’t think of anything but if I do I will let you know.”
Women seem to be challenged at knowing what they need and asking others to help them. We feel that we cannot ask others to do things for us. After all, have been raised to believe that it is our responsibility to take care of others, we do things for our spouses, our children, our family members even our co-workers.
One of the tough things for women to do it is ASK for what they want, clearly, succintly without guilt. It is something that we really must learn if we are ever going to be good at leveraging our networks. Keep in mind, we are not going to ask anyone for anything that we wouldd not do in return for them if they would ask.
Take a moment and ask yourself the following questions:
1. What 2-3 things could I ask others to do to help me? If you know in advance what kinds of things your networking members can do for you it will be easier for you to ask them when you are sharing a cup of coffee.
2. List 3-4 people you would like to meet or be connected to. Your network members are happy to connect you if you ask for someone specifically instead of “Anyone who needs my services.” These might be professionals you want to add to your network, possible referral sources or potential clients.
3. Make a list of the 4-5 people who might be willing to help you. Most likely these are people in your network whom you have a relationship with. They are people whom you are also willing to help if they ask you to.
It is important that you ask for what you want, there are members of your network who are more than happy to help you but they will not figure it out for you or take the initiative. Our beliefe that “If they like me or if I do a good job for them, they will help me, refer me or connect me” hurts us. We get what we ask for, if we wait for people to help us it may never happen.
Categories: networking
Tagged: connecting, Contacts, networking, opportunity, referral relationships, referral source, referrals
Business Networking & Fundraising
All things being equal people want to do business with people they know, like and trust. That includes Not For Profit Organizations.
I am speaking a the AFP or Association of Fundraising Professionals on Friday. I am the opening act in a line up of highly professional speakers on the topic of Social Networking, or Web 2.0.
I will be speaking about how Online Networking enhances your Face to Face networking and builds stronger networking relationships. But, I am a little perplexed, I am not sure that many Fundraising or Not for Profits really do face to face networking. I have met very few of them at a BNI meeting or at a Rainmakers meeting. Thinking of the chamber events I go to, I meet few if any of them there. So, I ask myself why don’t I ever meet them? Where are they networking? Do they network? Are they meeting the Small Business Owers, or are they just looking for the big guys?
Gleaners Food Bank is an example of a Not for Profit that networks face to face and does it well. They are active in BNI and have even taken leadership positions in their chapter and in the region. Because of their participation, many BNI members have taken tours, BNI Indiana does an annual fundraiser for them. We learned that Gleaners does not just feed the hungry, they help pantries around the state feed the hungry. Not just the hungry but children who get backpacks of food and senior citizens who get food delivered to them.
They have gotten volunteers, like Stacie Shipley with JNS Electric who delivers senior boxes for them every week. They have create positive word of mouth when the had Aaron Prickle of Lushin Associates take a tour so he could understand what they really do, and he now clears up a lot of misconceptions that he and many of his associates were once under. Victoria has educated a lot of BNI members about the organization all because she believes in face to face networking. Unfortunately they have embraced less of the Social Networking.
The Indianapolis Human Society has done a good job with social networking, I see them on Smaller Indiana and on Twitter, but I have never met anyone from the humane society at networking meeting.
If you are a NFP or a Fundraising Professional it is important to understand that people want to volunteer and donate to people they KNOW, LIKE and TRUST. Getting out to business networking events are important activities, it allows people to get to know you and your mission, to build a relationship, to volunteer, to spread word of mouth and to be advocates.
Using Social Media to amplify those relationships is the icing on the cake. It is a new economy and everyone is holding on to their dollars, it is time for Fundraisers to come out of the offices and board rooms and meet the small business people in the community. After all small business owners want to help, they are the fastest growing sector of the economy, but they also want to know who they are helping and why. They want to meet you face to face.
Categories: Online Networking · networking
Tagged: BNI, Fundraisers, network, networking, not for profit, rainmakers, Small business owners
If you want to get more referrals from people in your network, you have to be able to make it easy for them to find and give those referrals to you. They want to help you, but most will not step out of their comfort zone to make it happen,
Here are 5 things to help you start the process of making it easy;
1. What should I listen for? I am with people all of the time, and many of them are complaining about something, or sharing great news, or contemplating a decision. Each of these conversations present opportunities to develop referrals for you.
2. What visual clue might I see that would lead me to recommend or refer you? Are there things that are common to signals that a person might need you? Such as someone who’s car has a dent in it and you are an auto body shop owner.
3. Are there things that I might see that would help me recognize someone as your target market? Like a motor cycle or boat in a drive way for the insurance agent.
4. What kind of things might be happening that would lead me to believe that someone is in the market for your services? A child being born, and child going to college, or a new business that just opened?
5. Is there an activity that you clients often engage in? Such as running in mini-marathons, jogging, bike riding, working out, skiing, or any number of activities that would help me identify our clients?
The more you can paint a picture for your network members the easier it is going to be for them to help you. Unfortunately, this means that you have to give some thought to what and who you are looking for as clients. Anybody or everybody will not be as effective. Profile you clients and teach your network members how to spot the clues.
Categories: Strategy · networking
Tagged: business networking, connecting, Contacts, networking, referral source, referrals
Do you take responsibility for yourself and for your actions? Even if you screw up by mistake, do you take responsibility for it? Or do you cry to everyone, get others involved in your drama, make excuses, blame others, hideout, and avoid?
Amazingly more people behave as described above than those who take full, 100% responsibility. This is not the kind of behavior that makes for a good referral partner. It is important that we each take 100% Responsibility for what we do, both personally and professionally.
Integrity and ethics are built upon our taking responsibility for ourselves and our actions consistently, it requires that we speak up and say what is right, and when we are wrong. Integrity and ethics are important to the referral relationship. If your referral partners cannot trust 100% that you will act with integrity, ethics and responsibility they are not going to refer you business.
Ask yourself, do you take 100% responsibility or do you make excuses. Do you speak up for what is right, or do you hope others will? Do you divide or do you unite others?
Categories: Uncategorized
Tagged: networking, referral partner
I have spent years networking with both men and women. In that time I have noticed a lot of difference between how the two sexes network. I have come to realize that Women are really very natural networkers.
Building a strong network requires that you nurture the relationships that you have developed. Women are very good at nurturing, they stop to do those little things that make others feel special. They remember birthdays, they send cards, the give referrals and connections to others, and they volunteer to help whenever possible.
Women tend to be good listeners, one of the most important traits of good networkers. So they often hear the needs of others and seek to connect them to people who can fill those needs. Acting as a matchmaker between the two.
Women understand and operate under the philosophy of givers gain naturally. They understand the old adage that it is better to give than to receive. They are quick to give to others, they are quick to help, they are more than willing to introduce two people and help them to connect.
If you want to have a strong referral source in your network, ask a woman, she’s a natural.
Categories: networking
Tagged: givers gain, matchmaker, networking, referral source, Relationships, women
If you are not growing you are dying! Part of growing is the act of learning something new, consistently. So, let me ask you, what are you learning that is new right now?
I am an avid seeker of knowledge, I hated school and wasted a scholarship, but I love to learn. It is my goal to learn something new all the time, this year it is Spanish.
I have decided to learn Spanish, so I am hosting Spanish Classes in my Referral Institute training center. I invited several hundred people to join me in learning Spanish. I figure there is this whole population of people whom I cannot network with effectively and that means I am losing business to people who can connect with them. I thought other business people would feel the same way, but that has not been the case. Of the 600 people I invited to participate, only 10 showed up to learn.
What a pity, what an opportunity loss. It is so vital that we find new markets, new networks, new connectors and influencers and new ways of doing business. Still no one was interested in this opportunity to expand their knowledge and their businesses.
Those same people who spent so much time telling me they could not afford the time, or the money are the very same people who will tell me six months from now, that they don’t have any business, or business is slow.
If you are going to stay in business, you need to learn something new, like Social Networking, Web 2.0, Spanish, how to get in front of more prospects or how to close more deals. Because those who are learning will out perform you and your customers might become theirs.
Unfortunately, many business people spend more time telling me what they can’t do instead of finding ways to figure out what they can do.
Now is not the time to pull back on investing in yourself, your company and your staff. Now more than ever it is important to learn something new! Money and time invested in yourself and your team is always money well spent.
Categories: Strategy
Tagged: business, connecting, learning, networking, opportunities, referral institute, spanish classes
